Many of the participants in those performances died. Others have died since from natural causes. But one of the most remarkable things about this war is that you alluded to itn just a phrase. It's hard, again, for non israelis to appreciate the urgency with which people head toward conflict and violence in defence of their country. There are incredible descriptions of hundreds of disraelis camped out on the carpets at the airports in new york,. At the airport in paris, at hitro in london. I think they were summoned, in some strange way, by the same force that calls leonard coen to the war.
In October 1973, an unhappy Leonard Cohen was listening to the radio on his Greek island home when he heard that Israel was at war. He headed to Tel Aviv, exchanging a personal and creative crisis for a national one. Absent a plan and even a guitar, Cohen wound up serenading Israeli soldiers at the front. Journalist Matti Friedman talks about his book Who by Fire with EconTalk host Russ Roberts and explains how a songwriter and a nation were transformed in the crucible of war.